- Albion beat Norwich City 5-2 at the American Express Elite Football Performance Centre
- Stefan Ljubicic (2), Jordan Onen, Matt Everitt and Alex Cochrane on target for Albion
- Finlay Barnes and Alan Fleming score for Norwich
- The Seagulls are next in action away at West Ham United on Saturday
Brighton & Hove Albion’s under-18s returned to winning ways with a thrilling 5-2 victory over Norwich City at the American Express Elite Football Performance Centre today.
Stefan Ljubicic scored a brace, while Jordan Onen, Matt Everitt and Alex Cochrane were also on target against the Canaries, who found the net twice through Finlay Barnes and Alan Fleming.
Albion were dominant from the start, in the cold, wet and windy conditions in Lancing, and created their first chance of the game when Ljubicic’s header went over the bar from Cochrane’s corner.
Mamadou Kone then saw his effort clip the outside of the post before Norwich cleared the danger.
Onen broke the deadlock with 37 minutes gone by ending a swift Seagulls counter-attack, as the forward headed home Cameron Tutt’s pinpoint cross into the box.
Albion’s lead was doubled a minute before half-time thanks to Everitt, who finished off another free-flowing move with a deft finish over Norwich keeper Sam Blair.
The Seagulls made it 3-0 in the 58th minute when Cochrane saw his initial shot rebound off the bar, and saw his follow-up strike loop over Blair.
But the Canaries reduced the deficit just three minutes later through Fleming, who headed the ball beyond Seagulls keeper Thomas McGill at the end of a goalmouth scramble.
It didn’t take long for Albion to re-establish their three-goal advantage, and Ljubicic made it 4-1 with a clinical close-range finish from Hamish Morrison’s cross with 67 minutes played.
Morrison was the provider for Ljubicic again in the 89th minute, as the striker fired home with another finish from inside the area to make it 5-1.
But Norwich had the last word in an entertaining contest thanks to Barnes, who placed his shot past McGill after being played through on goal by Tyrese Omotoye.
ALBION: McGill; Morrison, Shihab, Weaire, Tutt; Kone (Spong 75), Fornah, Cochrane, Everitt (Packham 82); Onen (Leahy 87), Ljubicic.
SUBS NOT USED: Zalewski (GK), Offiah.